Berlin Voters Say No To $21M Police Station

BERLIN — Voters on Tuesday rejected a proposal for a new $21 million police station.

Unofficial results show 4,838 votes against to 2,962 in favor.

It's not clear what the next step is. Town officials agree that the police department needs more room and long ago outgrew the 10,000 square feet of room it has occupied in the ground floor of town hall since 1974.

The police department had 18 full-time officers 40 years ago; now it has 42 officers and a dozen civilian support staff. Police have opened the station up for tours since August in an effort to convince residents that a new station is needed, but a total of just 20 people showed up.

The new station was proposed for town land at 903-913 Farmington Ave., a site with room for expansion if necessary. The current location does not have sufficient room for expansion.

Garry Malone, a resident who took the tour earlier this month and supported the $21 million project, said Tuesday night that it's likely that people's fears about taxes caused the defeat.

"Disappointed, but not surprised," Malone said of the results. "We'll have to do the station eventually. This town had a history of putting off projects so long that in the cost doubles or triples."